Achilles Heel
by Drucilla Black
Summary: Everybody has an Achilles Heel, a severe weakness and/or fear that they try so hard to hide. Learn the Achilles Heels of each SPC character as they come out through their nightmares that are fuelled by their sub-conscious minds...
1. Speedy Cerviche

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ACHILLES' HEEL

Warning: Violence, Angst galore etc.

NB: I'm not one for writing SPC humour. I like to find the serious sides of their characters and expose them to the world. Lol. Also, don't expect each chapter to be too long.

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Chapter One: Speedy Cerviche

"Where am I?"

The words seemed to echo on forever. Speedy blinked as he took in his surroundings. It looked like Little Tokyo, but not the Little Tokyo he remembered. Not the colourful, happy city that was always bubbling over with life. This Little Tokyo echoed with the silence of death and all the colours was gone, replaced with differing shades of grey. 

Speedy took a step forward, morbidly curious to see more of the lifeless world that was spread out before his eyes. He already hated what he was seeing and it only became more and more horrific as he continued. The streets of Little Tokyo were thick with the lifeless bodies of its inhabitants. A horrible, tight knot began to form in Speedy's stomach and a haunting, whispery voice began to fill his mind with thoughts that, horrible as they were, Speedy knew to be true.

**__**

You know, they're all dead because of you. It's *all* because of you. They had to die because, this time, you did the unthinkable. You failed Little Tokyo and because of your failure, they died at the hands of the Ninja Crows.

"Mister! Mister! Help me!" 

A sweet voice, like the tinkling of a tiny bell, broke the eerie, morbid silence. Speedy turned his head, and saw a small she-cat running towards him, her long brown hair trailing behind her in the breeze.

"Mister! Please help me! The mean old crows killed my Mummy and I can't find my Daddy! Will you please help me look for him, Mister? Please?" She was so tiny, she barely came up to his waist. She couldn't have been any older than five.

"Sure, I'll help you, sweetie." Speedy smiled as he put a hand on the shoulder of the little girl, but inside, he could feel his heart and mind being torn apart as the voice continued to mock him.

**__**

Don't be foolish, Speedy. How can you help this little girl? Her Daddy's probably dead too, and all because of you. You're no help to anybody, and you know that. Why should you even still be alive if you're so useless? You couldn't even stop that stupid robot today, yet Guido took it down in one go. What kind of heroic leader are you supposed to be if even your student is capable of feats that you aren't? Useless, useless, USELESS!!!

"STOP IT! GET OUT OF MY HEAD! GET OUT GET OUT GET OUT!!!" He screamed as a flash of white-hot fury took over his body and mind. He reached for his Ginzu sword, his two swords in their movements with the intentions of creating a blast of energy to end his own life. He must have done something wrong in his motions, because the blast never went near him. Instead, the energy hit the little girl with full-force, sending her flying through the air before she hit the ground on her back, several feet away.

"No. Oh God, no!" Speedy's voice was barely above a whisper as he ran towards where the little girl lay. She was completely motionless and her brown eyes, which were beginning to cloud over in grey to match her surroundings, stared blankly through him, unblinking. He took her left wrist, hoping to feel the faint beat of a pulse underneath the fur and skin. It wasn't there.

His breathing became more and more erratic as each second passed by, then, without warning, Speedy collapsed onto his knees and began to shriek in a mixture of fury and terror…

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A jolt of shock ran through Speedy Cerviche as he sat up in bed, pyjama shirt sweat-soaked and clinging to him like a second skin. He kicked the blankets away and peeled off his shirt, needing the fresh air to fully revive and relax him once more. He doubted he would fall asleep again for awhile. This nightmare, while not frequent, always came to him when least expected. It was the worst nightmare of them all, after all, it exposed his weak spots, his greatest fears.

Speedy sighed as he left his bedroom to go downstairs to the parlour for a drink to calm his nerves.


	2. Polly Esther

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ACHILLES' HEEL

Warning: Violence, Angst galore etc. ALSO!!! THERE IS NON-CONSENSUAL SEX IN THIS CHAPTER!!! DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU!!!!!

NB: I'm not one for writing SPC humour. I like to find the serious sides of their characters and expose them to the world. Lol. Also, don't expect each chapter to be too long.

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Chapter Two: Polly Esther

The giant robot came crashing down from the sky. Polly screamed out of shock and rushed over towards it, not noticing that she was completely alone. She could see an arm, covered in white armour, sticking out from underneath the huge pile of junk that had once been a proud fighting machine. And she knew exactly who that arm belonged to.

"SPEEDY! OH, GOD, SPEEDY!!! PLEASE SPEEDY, I LOVE YOU, DON'T DIE ON ME, PLEASE!!! I NEED YOU!!!" Polly fell to her knees and began to frantically move the large hunks of metal on top of whatever the arm may be connected to. 

It was hard work, and several times, Polly had to stop because she either grew tired or managed to cut herself on a sharp piece of metal, but eventually, the body of Speedy Cerviche was unearthed from underneath the oversized metal scrapheap. His face, as well as most of his body, was covered in blood, cuts and bruises. His eyes were closed. Polly opened one, and a small sob escaped her throat when she realised it was slowly turning a dead grey, clouding over the once-bright blue. The amount of blood he was lying in also told Polly that there was no way he could still be alive.

"Speedy…I'm sorry!" She sobbed, cradling his lifeless body in her arms. "I'm sorry I never showed you the respect I should have. I'm sorry for all those times I abused you. I'm sorry I made you feel so unworthy. I'm sorry I never got to tell you I…that I love you! I always have!" For the moment, Polly couldn't think of anything more to say, so she just continued to embrace his body, her chest heaving with sobs. A low, whispery voice began to slip into her mind, mocking her with its poisonous words.

**__**

You're an idiot, you know that? Three years you've been in love with him, and never, not once, did you even hint to him about how you felt. Now he's dead, dead, DEAD and it's *so* easy for you to say those three little words, isn't it? But what's the point? A dead person can't love. Even if he had felt the same way, you're too late. You wasted so much time and energy in disguising your true feelings that he probably died believing that you hated him. How does that feel? 

"No. He couldn't have thought that." Polly whispered, holding him tight to her chest as the tears continued to flow, but the doubts were re-ignited by the voice.

**__**

All those times you made him feel inferior, even though he was the leader. The amount of times you hit him over the head with heavy objects and slashed his face and chest with your claws, just because you were frustrated. What about how you constantly found reasons to put him down and squash whatever confidence he may have had? Of course he hated you, and you deserve it all. You're not worthy of Speedy's love and you know it.

Polly closed her eyes and allowed two final tears to slip down her cheeks. The voice was right. Every single thing it said was true.

Her unhappy thoughts were suddenly interrupted when she felt the body in her arms beginning to move. It was struggling against her, wanting to sit up on its own.

"Speedy?" Her violet eyes widened in shock as she moved back a little, giving him some room. Slowly he turned, and Polly screamed.

It was Speedy, but he certainly wasn't alive. His eyes were wide-open and completely dead grey in colour. No iris' or pupils, just one constant film of dead grey for each eyeball. Also, his canine fangs seemed to have grown dramatically, as they were protruding from his closed mouth to past his lower lip. 

He made a quick move towards her, pinning her to the ground underneath him and pressing his mouth against hers. This should have been what Polly wanted, but it wasn't. This hard, icy body wasn't Speedy's warm, soft flesh and fur. The mouth with it's sharp, painful fangs threatening to pierce through her lower lip didn't belong to him. It was all wrong. So was the way his hands moved, claws extended as they ripped at the joining pieces of her armour, leaving her in nothing but her underwear and completely vulnerable underneath him.

Polly thrashed violently under the zombie-Speedy, trying to make him get off her. This wasn't how she envisioned her first time with him, or what she wanted either for that matter.

**__**

But why should it matter if *you* want this or not? Asked the voice poisonously. It was obviously enjoying her suffering **_Maybe you deserve to suffer under Speedy's ministrations for once, Polly. He had to suffer at your hands as well as the hands of others for the past three years. It's about time he decided to take revenge._**

The claws ripped at the plain, pink bra she was wearing, then dug into the soft flesh that was her breasts, drawing blood and causing her to whimper in pain as she continued to struggle. The claws struck again, this time tearing off her plain panties with one swipe and leaving her completely naked and vulnerable underneath him. The whole time, those dead, grey eyes of the undead were staring straight into her eyes, boring right through into her soul.

**__**

Why bother to struggle? It won't make a spot of difference, and it's not like this is the first time this has happened to you. You deserved it the last time this happened, so why shouldn't you deserve it now? It's about time Speedy took revenge for the way you treated him in life.

"Please Speedy. No…" Polly could feel any physical and emotional strength leaving her body rapidly as he forced her legs apart. Then she threw back her head and let out a blood-curling scream of pain as he forced himself inside her…

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Polly's eyes shot open. The nightmare had returned again, for the first time in months. She knew by now that it was stupid to be so frightened and upset over something that had never happened, and, she told herself firmly, never would happen, but thinking that way never seemed to calm her down. Curling into a ball, Polly clung to her pillow like a small child and began to sob quietly like she always did after having her worst nightmare.


	3. Guido Anchovy

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ACHILLES' HEEL

Warning: Violence, Angst galore etc. 

NB: I'm not one for writing SPC humour. I like to find the serious sides of their characters and expose them to the world. Lol. Also, don't expect each chapter to be too long.

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Chapter Three: Guido Anchovy

Was it a room? Guido wasn't sure. All he could see was neverending darkness. The floor was hard and cold beneath his feet. Two figures began to slowly form in front of him. One tomcat, one she-cat. They were both a little shorter than he was. The former was dressed in white armour, the latter in pink. Both were ready for battle, but against what? Guido scanned the darkness. There was nothing and nobody else that he could see.

"You're going down, Anchovy." Speedy said, breaking the silence. His voice was a menacing growl as he unsheathed his sword. "It's about time we did this." He blasted a small ball of energy from the tip of the sword, knocking Guido off his feet.

"My turn." Polly said, her voice low and growling like Speedy's. "Hiiii-ya!" Several heart-shaped pods were thrown at him, attaching themselves to parts of his body and releasing shocks of pain as well as clouds of pink gas that made him cough and choke loudly.

"What the?" He paused to cough loudly from the gas. Speedy moved closer and kicked him in the stomach. Hard. Guido groaned in pain, clutching his stomach. "Guys? What's gotten into you?" They both laughed.

"You don't get it, do you?" Speedy sneered, the tip of his sword pointing at the base of Guido's neck. "We don't want, or need you around, Guido. We never have. The SPC only needs strong, brave warriors that the public eye adores. That means, in more simple terms, that we *don't* need *you!*" He pressed the sword a little harder, and a trickle of blood came from the small hole the sword's tip had made. Guido tried not to wince.

"But did we ever need him, Speedy?" Polly asked in an almost dreamy tone, slipping her arm around his waist. "I mean, he only ever defeated one of the Big Cheese's robots, and I'm thinking that was pure luck anyway. You've defeated over twenty of them alone. Even I managed to defeat more than Guido could, and I'm a woman!" She laughed coldly, her violet eyes dancing with cruel humour as she planted kisses along Speedy's neck.

"Guys? Guys? What's going on here?" Guido could feel his breath tightening in his throat as he backed away. They laughed coolly. 

"You still don't get it, do you?" Speedy sneered, sliding the sword down to Guido's chest and taking a step forward. "Your time is up. Nobody wants you around anymore, because you've proved just how worthless you really are. In fact, I don't think anybody ever wanted you around. Take a good long look at your life. Can you honestly think of one time when your life was worth anything to *anybody?*"

Guido's mouth dropped open in shock at the cold, cruel words that were flowing from the mouth of the tomcat that he had believed to be his best friend. He cleared his throat, trying to come up with a good reply, but a cold, whispery voice penetrated his mind to answer for him.

**__**

Of course you can't think of a moment, because there isn't one. You were never needed in life. Speedy and Polly don't even want you around, look at the revulsion in their eyes. You were never part of the team, just an inconvenience that they were too polite to rid themselves of because they knew how badly you wanted to feel like you belonged somewhere. But you've never truly belonged anywhere, have you? If it weren't for their politeness, you would've died a long time ago at your own hands. Maybe you should. Go on, Guido, get Speedy to push the sword a little deeper. You're all alone once more, so you might as well end it. You're worthless, you have nobody and nothing to live for… 

"No! That's not true…" He muttered, barely loud enough for Speedy and Polly to hear. "I'm not worthless, and I'm not alone. I *am* needed…I know it!" Polly laughed coolly as she continued to rain kisses over Speedy's neck. He pulled her closer with one arm.

"Oh, look! The little baby is talking to himself!" She squealed gleefully. "Well, I hate to bust your bubble, Guido, but every word you speak is a lie. You *are* worthless and you *are* alone! Speedy and I were *never* your friends. We don't even like you. You're nothing but a delusional moron with nothing and nobody to live for. I mean, who would even *want* to like, let alone love somebody as worthless as you?" She turned around and captured Speedy's mouth in a deep, passionate kiss. He responded eagerly, and Guido could see their tongues battling for dominance. Their eyes remained wide open the entire time and fixed upon him. 

Guido bit his tongue and closed his eyes tight. He wasn't going to cry, he couldn't. But these were his supposed best friends doing this to him…

**__**

They're just proving the truth to you, Guido. You're weak, worthless and alone. You can't defeat second-hand robots without their help, you're considered by everybody, even them, to be the least important SPC, and you have nobody. You have no family, nobody to hold you at night and tell you that you mean something to them. Hell, you don't even have any friends. WEAK, WORTHLESS AND ALONE!!! Accept it and kill yourself. It's all you have left, and you know it.

"Please kill me, Speedy!!!" He rasped, feeling completely drained of all energy. Speedy smiled cruelly, twisting the Ginzu Sword against Guido's chest just hard enough to draw blood.

"Oh, I plan to." He answered evenly. "But not right away. I think I'll continue to let you know just how worthless you are for a little longer. Oh, and by the way, in case you haven't noticed, Polly and I are together. Guess that proves who she thinks is more worthy of her love, ain't that right, Polly?"

"Definitely." She sneered, staring straight at Guido. "You could never compete with somebody as wonderful as Speedy. He's always been the one with more friends and girlfriends, he's the leader of the SPC, and he's defeated more robots in the last three years than you could in nine lifetimes-"

"Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!!!" Guido yelled, has claws digging viciously into his forearms. Their laughing, as well as the whispery, mocking laugh of the voice inside his head, seemed to fill his ears and echo violently around what Guido now believed to be a room…

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Guido woke up to himself kicking the bedclothes violently off the bed. He groaned and pushed his damp, dark hair back from his forehead.

"Fuck." He groaned again. "That dream again. It's like it knows all my fears and gets a kick out of exposing them to me." There was no point in trying to sleep again, he knew that. His ears pricked up at the sound of soft sobs coming from the room next to him and, mean as it was, he felt a twinge of satisfaction. Polly had been having her nightmare too, so he wasn't alone.

Clad only in a pair of black boxers, he stumbled towards his draws and felt in the top one for a cigarette and lighter. They were the only things that could calm him down after the dream. He knew that Speedy and Polly often had similar dreams - dreams that exposed their greatest fears - around the same time he did because they had discussed them before late at night over hot drinks. But they all had different methods of coping.

Speedy's method was late-night bingeing. Polly usually cried herself back to a dreamless sleep. He smoked himself into apathy, but never found himself able to sleep again for the rest of the night.

Guido sighed, shivering slightly at the cool breeze as he stepped onto the balcony, lighting his cigarette and sharply inhaling the strong smoke into his lungs. He exhaled just as sharply and leant onto the balcony rail, the cigarette resting between the second and third fingers of his left hand. He was going to be out here for awhile.


End file.
